Murder trial starting over Chicago-area woman's 1973 death

ROLLING MEADOWS, Ill. (AP) - Opening statements are scheduled in the trial of a Texas man accused of killing his wife 45 years ago in a staged car crash in suburban Chicago.

Jury selection was concluded Monday in the trial of 76-year-old Donnie Rudd on first-degree murder charges for the 1973 death of Noreen Kumeta Rudd. Authorities initially ruled the 19-year-old woman's death an accident, and Donnie Rudd wasn't charged until late 2015 when he was living in Sugar Land, Texas.

Rudd told police his wife was thrown from their car after it was run off the road by another driver.

Cook County prosecutors say a 2013 autopsy of Kumeta Rudd's remains determined she died of homicide and that $120,000 in life insurance motivated Rudd to kill his wife.

Prosecutors and defense attorneys on Tuesday are to give their opening statements.

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Information from: Daily Herald, http://www.dailyherald.com